Memories of the Artery
by Belecine
Summary: Glancing over his shoulder quickly to see if Harry was looking at him – he wasn’t – he haughtily announced the opinion of hospital goers everywhere. “I despise hospitals.” Draco remembers the past as he watches Harry in the hospital bed. SlashHP/DM 2ch.
1. Chapter 1

Memories of the Artery by Belecine

Disclaimer: No money is being profited from this fiction. Characters belong to J.K. Rowling, I´m just using them for my own fun and imagination. And I mean no offense to the wonderful actors and actresses who bring these characters to life.

Warnings: Slash, I can't think of any other reason why you shouldn't read this story.

Pairing: Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy, other pairings will be notified in the later chapters.

Ignores the epilogue in DH and the war goes on a bit longer than it did in cannon.

A big thanks to my two wonderful betas, Nemo and JadeyPL. This chapter would have been quite different if not for them.

A man in his late forties, wearing an expensive looking shadow grey coat, a sea-blue classic shirt and formal black pants walked down the white halls counting the door numbers as he passed by them, searching for the right one.

Finally reaching the correct door at the end of the hall, he opened it and strode through it with a handful of brightly colored flowers and a couple of books in his hand.

The room was a bit large for one person and thankfully it wasn't as white as the rest of the hospital. At the far right was a large, wobbly table – white, like the rest of the furniture – and next to it was the bathroom door. A window took up the entire left wall and in the middle was an occupied, modest bed. Beside the single bed was an uncomfortable metal chair.

A smile graced his face as he saw a picture of himself on top of the table, accompanied by a large stack of untouched books and other little objects.

"I brought you tulips and some books," said the visitor, his back facing the patient as he placed the elegant bouquet on the window ledge.

There was a slight pause before he finally said," Thank you, Angel," a warm look in his startling green eyes.

Glancing over his shoulder quickly to see if Harry was looking at him – he wasn't – he haughtily announced the opinion of hospital goers everywhere. It was undoubtedly stitched onto a pillow somewhere.

"I despise hospitals."

Deep chuckles followed the statement. Then, remembering where he was, the chuckles stopped. Forlorn, Harry looked over at his life partner of twenty-six years and asked, "Love, why won't you come and sit beside me?"

Sighing, the ex-death eater turned around and went to sit on the chair next to the bed.

"I didn't because you didn't give me a proper greeting," Draco Malfoy accused the Savior of the Wizarding World. "You would think a man would be happy to see his lover after being stuck with old**, **nosy nurses all day."

"I am happy to see you!" He said**, **but Draco wasn't satisfied.

Harry Potter gave him the wounded puppy look; then he realized Draco actually was a bit put out.

"I was just thinking!" exclaimed Harry in defense.

"About?" He raised an eyebrow in mock disbelief as if his lover couldn't do such a great feat as think.

Blushing, Harry turned away and mumbled, "The past… and life in general."

"Come on, Harry! It's not like you're going to die!" Draco teased, trying to alleviate the tension with humor and because he was deep, deep in denial. "And everybody says I'm the drama queen." Harry's blush increased tenfold.

"But I´m going to have coronary artery bypass surgery! You know that it's a serious operation," the raven haired man said apprehensively.

"Harry", Draco started, "the doctors do this all the time; it's a common surgery. It helps that I gave you potions to make the operation more risk free. "He took hold of Harry's chin and forcing him to look at him when Harry kept staring at his hands. "Trust me, you are going to be alright and annoy the hell out of me for another twenty six years," Draco said, smirking, trying to cheer his lover up.

When Harry opened his mouth and was about to start complaining how it was Draco who was annoying, "And if you ever start dramatizing again I won't bring you any James Bond books." He continued in a threatening voice.

Harry pouted and said in a childish voice, "You're evil."

Laughing, Draco looked at the patient. His childhood nemesis had grown to be, surprisingly, a 6´1 foot tall, handsome man. He was toned and well built; he still had very nice abs and muscles, even at the age of 48. His face had retained some of its boyishness, which made him look more carefree, though his eyes held the look of a man who had gone through a lot in his life. Harry had refused to get contacts and had instead kept his glasses. Of course, Draco had made him buy more fashionable (and in Harry's opinion, ridiculously expensive) frames. They were similar to his old ones, but gave him a more sophisticated look and were tinted dark silver at the edges. The scar on his forehead, hidden behind dark locks of hair, was barely noticeable, but still a reminder of the past.

Harry had, at a younger age, gelled his hair stylishly (or he had tried to, anyway), but now his hair almost reached his shoulders and had tamed a little bit. Over time, wrinkles appeared, but it did not stop women and men from hitting on The-Man-Who-Defeated-You-Know-Who, much to Draco's dismay.

Draco himself had become the same height as his deceased father, and looked quite similar to him. The only noticeable change was that instead of long silver hair tied with a leather ribbon, Draco's hair was much shorter, even shorter than Harry's, and he had stopped using countless hair products, so now his hair curled slightly at the end. Harry had teased him mercilessly, often calling him "Mommy's little angel" in public places, thus came the nickname Angel.

Flashback

_Draco and Harry had been waiting in the bus stop for less than five minutes, when two adolescent girls a foot from them burst into giggles. Behind them was a toddler who was sitting in his mother's lap, while his mother chattered away to the elderly women who sat beside her._

"_Why couldn't you have just driven the car or called a taxi?" Draco asked Harry in annoyance, while glaring at the two girls._

"_Because I thought some fresh air would be good for us," said Harry._

"_And you just conveniently forgot how far away we live from London?" Draco asked sarcastically._

_Harry sighted and didn't bother to answer him, because in times like these it was better to let Draco rant away._

"_Do you have any idea how cold I am?" The blond started whining. "I can't feel my freaking fingers! And it's all your fault!" When Harry still didn't comment Draco continued. "My poor hair is going to freeze and it won't stay as soft as before." _

_Harrys face broke into a devious grin. "Awww, is Mommy's little angel gonna cry?" Harry said in an overly sweet voice. _

"_How dare you..." Draco growled._

"_Now now, little angel, Mommy doesn't want you to get mad now, does she?" Harry cut in, cooing loudly enough so that the bystanders heard him._

_The two girls started to giggle uncontrollably and the two other women behind them watched with thinly veiled amusement. _

"_Potter, if you don't stop now I will not be responsible for my actions," Draco threatened in a menacing tone._

_But Harry wouldn't stop; after all, it was always Draco who teased him mercilessly, and now he was paying back._

"_Oh my, is my cute and sweet little angel going to boo boo?" Harry went even as far as to pinch Draco's cheek and made the pink tinted skin to grown darker._

_By now the girls were laughing like lunatics and even the two older women couldn't help but laugh at the couple._

"_Aren't you the most adorable angel I ha-", Harry had begun again, but before he could finish his sentence Draco attacked him. _

_The bus stopped next to them just as Draco was about to bite his lovers hand. Draco, seeing the bus first, let go of Harry and ran toward the bus's door and paid for his ticket. Harry, realizing why the Slytherin had given up and left, ran after him and reached the door a second before it closed._

_While paying for his ticket, Harry looked around for Draco, and after locating him he saw that the man wore a smug look on his face. It didn't take him long to figure out that his lover had thought of a revenge for his earlier action._

_Sitting beside the fair haired man Harry tired to ask him in a light tone, "So, what punishment have you come up with?" Even an imbecile could detect the large amount of dread pouring out of the Gryffindor._

_The dark wizard gave him an evil smirk and said, "I have decided that a suitable punishment for you is four days without any…intimacy." Draco purred out the last word seductively._

_The most powerful wizard in the planet knew that the next four days were going to be hell._

Present

"…so rude and I nearly blew my top, because of her constant nagging. So of course she started to…" Harry had started ranting about something, while Draco had been down the memory trip.

"Don´t you think I did the right thing, Angel?" the question was directed towards the unsuspecting victim.

Draco looked up at Harry and not wanting to admit he had not been listening to one word, because it would make him look like a plebian, he chose to ignore it and asked one of his own, to see if his lover would answer a small matter which had made him confused so many years ago.

"Do you remember when you first showed up at my door after the ministry hearing?"

Harry nodded.

"Why did you come back after I had so rudely insulted you and practically blamed you for losing my ability to do magic?" Draco had never asked this before because he had been busy learning everything about the Muggle world and had simply been grateful for having Harry in his life.

Harry smiled and was about to answer when a strict looking nurse, a bit on the plump side, with grey-brown hair and hazel eyes, stepped into the room and greeted Draco with a nod. She reminded them strongly of Professor McGonagall, but would only have come up to Harry's shoulder.

Turning to face raven haired man, she wore the expression of a brave warrior ready to take down the dragon.

Harry had gone completely white the moment he had seen her. His eyes were darting around the room, always staying a second longer on the two doors. The doors were his only option of escaping from the evil little nurse. After all, she had come to collect another round of blood samples, ready to fight tooth and nail with her patient, who happened to be absolutely terrified of needles.

Draco moved out of the way, a bright spark of amusement growing stronger in his eyes, which looked eerily similar to the late, lemon –drop- eating Headmaster. He stepped back to watch the show.

Harry was looking at him, his eyes just about screaming,

_Help me!_

"Mr. Malfoy, please barricade the bathroom door for me so Mr. Potter cannot escape." The nurse's loud voice was heard over Harry's pleas for mercy, shouted curses and sworn revenge.

Smirking like the devil itself, Draco placed himself in front of the bathroom, wishing he had remembered to bring a camera recorder.

"It would be my pleasure, Nurse Halley."

Harry shot him a look full of poison and promises of pain and death that would have made the Dark Lord himself proud.

A/N: I don't know when I will post the next chapter, but hopefully it will be up before next year… yeah I´m a really slow writer. I am more of a reader than a writer.(update 6.2. the second chapter is much better so please go and read it. And you get to find out why harry is in a muggle hospital.)

So please review and tell me of your thoughts. Constructive criticism will be greatly appreciated.

-x-x-Belecine-x-x-


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: No money is being profited from this fiction. Characters belong to J.K. Rowling, I´m just using them for my own fun and imagination. And I mean no offense to the wonderful actors and actresses who bring these characters to life.

Warning: Slash, I can't think of any other reason why you shouldn't read this story

Pairings: Harry/Draco, mentions of Ron/Hermione. Other pairings will be informed in later chapters.

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After filling the glass tubes, Nurse Halley quickly excused herself and was out the door in seconds. Two hours had passed since then.

In that time Draco had returned to the same chair, scanning over _The_ _Daily Prophet _(spelled with a Notice-Me-Not Charm, courtesy of Hermione_) _and once in a while marking the pages Harry would find interesting with a dogs ear.

Harry`sface held a hint of anger and boredom, his arms crossed against his chest. He was staring straight ahead, giving Draco the silent treatment, regarding the earlier incident with the needles.

"Hermione and Weasley will be here any minute."

The only acknowledgment he got from Harry was a loud huff.

Deciding it was fruitless to continue talking to his lover at the moment, he went back to reading the newspaper. He scanned the articles with practiced ease, until his eyes were captured by a surprising headline.

_**Daughter of war-hero discovers unknown magical plant **_

_**Leslie Longbottom, daughter of the famous war-hero and herbologist, Neville Longbottom has found a magical plant in the remote areas of Madagascar. Ms. Longbottom, a well known Potions Mistress, has told us so far that the plant would be a major breakthrough for Alzheimer's and other types of dementia…**_

Draco ran his finger slowly over the article. He remembered seeing a glimpse of Longbottom at the final battle, fighting alongside Harry for a moment.

At the age of nineteen, Harry Potter had destroyed, once and for all, the most powerful and deadly Dark Lord the world had seen in centuries. What no one had foreseen was that in the process Harry would slowly lose all his powers, leaving him with as much magic as a Squib.

The war had been cruel to both sides. Many had lain injured on the battlefield and even more had lain dead.

Those that were not seriously injured helped the others into Hogwarts for treatment. Other wizards who were not exhausted from the battle fought the remaining Death Eaters and tried to capture them.

Draco had been caught by the Aurors and, like rest of the Death Eaters, was shipped off to the ministry cells, awaiting for trial.

After spending two weeks in the high security cell, Draco's trial began.

* * *

**29 years ago**

Three Aurors marched across the darkly lit hall and stopped in front of a one-roomed cell. A faint smell of ashes came from the walls.

The tallest of the Aurors took out a key with long, curved teeth and placed it in the lock, but didn't open it. The other two Aurors held out their wands, their faces grim and serious. The one standing on the right started to chant in Latin and wave his wand in relaxed circular patterns, while the other pronounced four gibberish words and placed his wand next to the silver key. Only after the two Aurors had finished, did the tallest guard turn the key and open the cell door. Inside lay a thin and exhausted looking young man.

Draco looked up and squinted to see who it was. Nobody, until now, had entered his room. There were no windows to give light; only the torches from the hallway made it possible to see. No warmth came from them. The low temperature bothered him the most. It did nothing to the Aurors, but to prisoners like Draco, who only had a torn and dirty robe covering them; it was like hell frozen over.

The fire from the torches would create shadows that dance across the grey bricks that were used to build the walls and floor. They were covered with scratches and other markings from earlier prisoners. Filth that covered the cold floor, worn smooth from time, was just as dirty as the meek cot placed at the corner. Being locked up in a dirty cell made him realize how much he had taken for granted the luxury and comfort he used to have.

At first he would follow some strange pattern on the floor with his eyes, trying to keep his mind off the impending trial, but when he realized they were blood trails only the loud breathing and vile curses from nearby cells would give him peace.

Seeing the three Aurors he realized his trial would begin today. The thought filled him with a momentary horror which he had felt when taken to the Dark Lord´s face for the first time. He had heard footsteps echo through the hall when they took the Death Eaters to trial one by one. He had hoped this day would never come, but now that it had Draco felt a sense of relief wash over him, knowing that after today he wouldn't have to agonize about his fate anymore.

He remembered trying to get his family and himself outside the Great Hall and take flight. They had run out the doors of Hogwarts and tried to run to the gates, chased by the Aurors. His father, realizing they wouldn't all make it, had fallen back and started firing in return at the Aurors, giving Draco and his mother time to escape.

Narcissa had reached the gates first and Apparated in an instant. One of the Aurors hit him with a Stupefy just as he was about to do the same. Draco had woken up in the cell hours later with no wand and a humongous headache.

As one of his escorts hauled him to his feet and led him through the hall, he realized he was walking out of a cell to another more terrifying one, situated in Azkaban. The Dementors had been brought back under control after Lord Voldemort's demise. The other, more horrifying option was that they might be dragging him away to be given the Dementor's Kiss… or so he thought.

The Auror standing to the left quickly and efficiently bounded his hands in thin but heavy chains. The Auror had red hair - reminding him, unfortunately, of Weasel. And the man's face looked like he´d swallowed a bag of lemon drops.

The Weasley-looking man fell back as they started to walk down the hallway. The tallest of the Aurors, who also happened to be the oldest of the three, stayed beside him while the other Auror lead the way.

Draco's thoughts had been his only companion whilst imprisoned. He thought a lot about the last few years, especially his sixth year when it all started spiraling downwards.

Until now, he had suppressed certain memories, knowing that they would only bring him guilt and remorse.

He would always remember the feeling of horror and helplessness as the twinkle vanished from the old wizard's eyes, and his Headmaster falling down from the Astronomy tower.

Over the years he had come to regret many things he had caused that year, like letting the Death Eaters come into Hogwarts, particularly Greyback. He honestly hadn't known that the werewolf would come. Knowing that not only had he endangered the school, but also his friends and other Slytherins who were loyal to the Dark side, had caused him to question the Dark Lord for the first time.

It had all seemed like a blur as he ran side by side with his Head of House and the other Death Eaters, running through the gates and Apparating.

Draco tried to keep away from the other Death Eaters. The moment they had come back to the headquarters, Aunt Bellatrix had dragged him by the collar straight to the Dark Lord´s throne. After receiving many Crucios and other curses from Voldemort; the inner circle and other high ranking Death Eaters had treated him like dirt.

Even if Lucius was also technically in Lord Voldemort´s inside circle, the Malfoy family was essentially outcasts. His father´s capture and Draco's latest failure had led them to the position that they were now in.

It was no secret that the only reason Voldemort tolerated them was because of their family's wealth and the usefulness of Malfoy Manor-which he used as to his pleasure.

Draco had helped the Dark side by making potions, Snape had taken Lucius´s place and become Voldemort´s second in command after killing Dumbledore, and occasionally raided random muggle villages with low class Death Eaters. He had cursed and shouted standard hexes at the muggles like all the others, but had refrained from uttering any Unforgivables. The things he had seen would always haunt him.

For a long time Draco had blamed his father for the turns his life had taken after sixth year. But, in the end, he had admitted that he could have been braver in the last battle and chosen to do the right thing, instead of fighting for the man that had cared little for his family or him.

The resentment and anger he felt towards his father made his chest tighten in pain. The man had gotten himself caught, and so he had had to fill his father's shoes. If only his father had told him the truth about what it really meant to be a follower of the Dark, how sick and twisted you had to be to belong in the inner circle. Lucius had told him since he was a child that it was his rightful place to stand in beside his father.

It wasn't fair that he couldn't be a normal teenager. He didn't have the opportunity to go out on dates, joke around with his friends and just have fun. Instead, because of his father and Voldemort, he had to sacrifice all of these and try to keep his mother and him away from the Dark Lord´s anger.

When Potter finally defeated Lord Voldemort, Draco had never been more grateful towards the git. Potter had single-handedly freed his family of Voldemort, something he could have never done. The dislike he felt for the Gryffindor had not diminished in the slightest, but if he ever got the chance to meet Potter, even if it meant swallowing his pride, he would thank the annoying bastard –and then hex him in the back.

Just as they were nearing the door that would open to the court room, the Auror beside him spoke up.

"Don't think you'll get off easy, boy," grunted the old Auror his scarred face turning into a smirk, "You'll probably get the same as your old man, the Kiss." Both of the younger Aurors snorted in agreement.

Draco could feel the tears burning his eyes. He closed them and took a long and deep breath, trying his best to keep from breaking his cool and arrogant façade as the onslaught of emotions raged inside of him. Until now his father's fate had remained a mystery. No matter how much resentment he felt towards his father, he respected the man and, in a way, loved him. For years he had always looked up to him, tried his best to be like him in every way. He had childishly thought that the man was immortal, but now Lucius Malfoy was gone.

The heavy oak door was pushed open, leading them into a dimly lit room with uncomfortable looking benches lined in a nearly closed circle across the four walls. In the middle an intimidating chair, wrapped in chains occupied the space.

The Auror who had spoken seconds ago took off his handcuffs and forced him to sit down. In a blink the chains glowed and wrapped around him like snakes and tied him almost painfully to the chair. His throat was horribly dry, his hands sweating and heart pumping rapidly. Draco licked his chapped lips in a small act of nervousness. He hid his exhaustion and fear by looking straight ahead with determination not to give these vultures the satisfaction of seeing the last Malfoy defeated.

He took a quick glance around the place, seeing familiar faces in the audience; his father had brought them from time to time to his study room at Manor. Some of the people that sat there with their expensive robes and conceited demeanors had helped Voldemort financially even if they hadn't taken His mark on their arms. Those men and women sat before him, waiting to judge him, looking at him like he was some vile animal from the wild. They were just as guilty as he was, Draco thought with outrage. Before he could glare at them the Wizengamot entered the court room and walked to their place. The old men looked bored, like his future meant nothing to them; he was only another criminal soon to be getting a one-way ticket to Hell.

A member of the Wizengamot that reminded Draco immensely of Professor Flitwick cleared his throat to draw attention. The old wizard wore a dusty grey robe with a sharp and pointy hat; he took out a scroll and started to read in a surprisingly strong and sturdy voice, very unlike his Charms Professor, the crimes he had committed out loud.

Perhaps he had a chance of avoiding a life sentence, Draco tried to think optimistically. After all, he hadn't killed anyone. He kept his fingers cross the whole time.

Draco Alexander Lucius Malfoy was sentenced to a life without magic.

"No! " Draco had all but screamed at the Wizengamot in indignation.

"Mister Malfoy, please restrain yourself," one of the members of the Wizengamot said, his calloused voice ringing throughout the hall warningly.

The verdict had been shocking and extremely rare; in fact it had only been given to three wizards in the past. The last one was condemned 170 years ago.

Surprisingly none of the other Death Eaters had had the same sentence. Half of them were sent to Azkaban and the other half were forced to take the Dementor's Kiss.

"_Well at least I can take pride in that."_ thought Draco, hysteria boiling at the edge of his mind.

But they had not finished declaring his punishment.

"The offender may not enter the Wizarding world for minimum of 15 years."

The head Wizengamot continued, "We and the juries see fit for Mister Malfoy to contain one third of the money from the Malfoy family vault. The rest shall be confiscated by the Ministry including all of Malfoy property and estates except the two in Great Britain, both a noticeable range from any Wizarding populations or territories. Mister Malfoy will be informed of these addresses after the trial."

Draco had gone through a series of emotions upon hearing what his fate would be. Shock turning quick to anger and had continued to every other negative emotion known and unknown to mankind, but in the end it had settled to sadness.

"_I´ll have enough money to live more or less as I used to, but I might have to get a job…a Muggle job!"_ Nausea nearly overcame the feeling of gratitude.

The potion which was brought forth had already been brewed beforehand for one of the Dark Lord's servants that the panel of judges would choose to give.

When an Auro'rs leather-gloved hand forcefully opened his mouth, every fiber of his body tried to fight back, but it was useless.

The burning liquid spread like an uncontrolled Fiendfyre curse. He could feel his body fighting against it, the pain almost bringing him to the edge of madness. Every cell in his body was ripped of his magic. After what felt like hours the pain stopped, leaving him drenched in sweat and a with sore throat.

"_Curse them, curse them all!"_ Draco thought with trepidation as he felt his magic leave him. He was now an ordinary, non-magical pureblood.

With a snap the wand was broken in two halves in front of him and the wizards that had participated in the trial.

He only felt numbness seeing the wand he had stolen from an unknown corpse, broken. He didn't know what would happen to his own wand. "_Potter will probably keep it as a trophy," _Draco thought with disdain.

He was kicked out of the Ministry and lead into Diagon Alley by a group of Aurors to make sure, after taking claim of his property and money, his banishment from the Wizarding world would begin.

People kept staring at him all the way. The older people looked at him in disgust, the younger wizards and witches openly scared or fascinated, and the children were dragged away by their parents, trying to steer them away from the Death Eater.

"Confringo!"

Before Draco could see who had cast it, he was pushed to the ground, hard, by one of the Aurors to his left and told to stay put. Three of them ran after the caster.

He cursed the Auror silently, wishing that the curse had hit one of the Aurors instead.

Unfortunately they came back moments later, uninjured and empty handed.

"Get up Malfoy." The lead Auror said with contempt, taking hold of his arm and dragging him with enough force to leave a bruise.

Rubbing his forearm, Draco asked, "Did you get him?" Already guessing what the answer would be. He had a suspicion that they had let the person go free.

"None of your business, scum!" All of the Aurors laughed.

The few years at the Dark Lord's side had taught him to hold his sharp tongue, but it didn't stop him from muttering numerous insults under his breath the whole way to Gringotts.

After several hours of business with the goblins, the guards Apparated, leaving him at the entrance, alone, without a wand to protect himself.

Draco Malfoy uttered the only thought which had been running through his mind since the trial.

"I am so screwed."

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Feel free to criticize or suggest ideas.

Review, please?

Belecine


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